Footwear with a releasable pin for use in gliding sports

ABSTRACT

A boot suitable for use in association with various sports related gliding devices having a stirrup embedded in the sole of the boot containing a pair of opposed arms for removably supporting a pin therebetween.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to the field of boots intended for participationin gliding sports such as cross-country skiing, ice-skating orroller-skating, snowboarding, etc. It relates more specifically to theboots which are to interact with the gliding member proper by means of ametal pin located under the sole of the boot. It more specifically takesadvantage of the means of fixing this pin to the boot. In the remainderof the description, attention will more particularly be devoted to theuse of the invention in cross-country skiing, but it must be kept inmind that a person skilled in the art will be readily able to transposeit to other sports such as skating or boarding.

PRIOR ART

As is known, a cross-country ski boot is composed of an upper intendedto cover the foot and of a sole connected to the binding and/or the topface of the ski.

Near the front end, the sole has a transverse pin intended to be caughtby the binding secured to the ski. It is becoming increasingly commonfor high-performance boots to have one or more longitudinal groovesunder the sole. These grooves interact with complementary ridges on theski or, more generally, on the binding. In general, the main groove isdeeper at the front of the sole in order to house the binding pin. Thelatter connects between the two vertical sides of the groove.

As is known, this pin extends deeply into the sole to give an effectiveanchor. This is necessary because during jolts and when the ski isflying, the pin is subjected to high stresses and needs to be firmlyattached to the sole in order to prevent it from pulling out.

To improve the anchorage, it has been proposed for the extensions of thepin to be connected to a metal plate embedded in the material of thesole when it is being manufactured by moulding, towards the rear of theboot.

Quite clearly, moulding the sole requires particular precautions andspecial tooling to allow the sole to be moulded encompassing the twoends of the transverse pin, while leaving this pin visible.Unfortunately, even though these special procedures are compatible withovermoulding the sole directly to the upper, they require very expensiveso-called "slide" moulds because of the undercut formed by thetransverse pin. Soles obtained independently are therefore bonded to theupper afterwards. It then follows that the cost price of a boot of thistype is still high because sophisticated moulding machines and asignificant amount of labour must be used.

The same drawbacks inherent in the moulding of the sole are observed,for example, with snowboarding boots or skates.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the invention is to provide a design of that region of theboot that has the metal pin which allows easy moulding, avoiding the useof special tooling while at the same time retaining a high anchoragecapability.

Thus, the boot in accordance with the invention is of the typecomprising a sole the underside of which has a recess delimited by twomore or less vertical walls pointing towards the bottom of the boot, thesaid recess having passing through it a pin which is intended tointeract with means for attaching to the gliding member and comprising arigid piece embedded in the sole and having two extensions extendinginto the said walls and intended to accommodate the said pin.

This boot is characterized in that the extensions and the ends of thepin have means intended to make this pin removable.

In other words, the metal pin is removable and is secured to the bootfor example by being screwed to a piece embedded within the sole. Thisembedded piece constitutes the anchoring points for the pin.

The invention therefore consists in using an anchoring piece and a pinwhich are separate, the anchoring piece being at least partiallyembedded during the moulding of the sole so that it does not form anyundercut.

In this way, the moulding tools are simple, and this in particularallows the sole to be moulded directly on the upper.

In a first embodiment, the embedded rigid piece is a U-shaped stirruppiece, the opening of which points towards the metal pin and the legs ofwhich form the extensions which are intended to accommodate thecharacteristic pin.

In practice, the rear portion of the U-shaped stirrup piece is situatedin a plane more or less parallel to the plane of the underside of thesole of the boot, the front ends of this stirrup piece being arranged ina plane which is also more or less parallel to the plane of the sole,but below the plane of the rear portion of the stirrup piece.

Advantageously, the legs of the said stirrup piece have a discontinuity,the end of each leg being offset downwards with respect to the plane ofthe stirrup piece. In this way, the ends of the stirrup piece which actas anchoring points for the pin are closer to the underside of the sole,while the anchoring part proper is situated right at the heart of themoulded portion of the front of the boot.

In another embodiment, the embedded metal piece is a plate bent intothree portions, namely a first, central, portion, more or less parallelto the sole of the boot, and two lateral portions extending into theside surfaces, these lateral portions being designed to accommodate thetransverse pin. This design makes it possible to increase the area ofcontact between the anchoring piece and the moulded material, and thisimproves the resistance of the unit as a whole to pulling out.

As regards the catching of the characteristic pin on the boot, a numberof embodiments can be envisaged.

Thus, in a first alternative form, the end of the pin, which is forexample metal, has a tapped hole into which the threaded shank of a boltis screwed.

In a second alternative form, the pin has at least one end which istelescopic and retractable, and the two ends of the pin can be housed inhousings provided for this purpose in the extensions of the embeddedmetal piece.

In a third alternative form, the pin may be integral with two hollowsleeves intended to be pushed over visible parts of the extensions ofthe embedded piece.

Quite obviously, a number of pin geometries and/or cross sections mayprove advantageous for use in accordance with the invention. Inparticular, the pin may be cylindrical but also formed of a strip shapedto suit its purpose.

The provisions in accordance with the invention prove particularlyadvantageous when manufacturing boots intended for cross-country skiing,and in which the recess is forward of the metatarsophalangeal joint, theextensions then pointing forwards.

As a side issue, the invention makes it possible to solve the problemwith wear on the front part of the boot, where repeated contact with thebinding causes deformation and even sometimes breakages. For this, thefront end of the sole which corresponds to the region of wear can bedetached from the boot. It has housings that complement the lateralextensions of the metal piece to allow it to be pushed on, andperforations to allow the transverse pin to pass.

In another embodiment, using the anchoring points formed by theextensions of the embedded piece, the boot has a wide longitudinalgroove on the underside of the sole. In combination, the boot has astrip attached inside this wide groove, the lowermost face of thisattached strip having a profile which complements the region of the skiand/or of the binding on which it rests. Furthermore, the boot alsotowards the rear of said wide groove, has means of anchoring the rear ofthe said attached strip, the front part of the attached strip beinganchored by the extensions of the embedded metal piece in combinationwith the transverse pin.

With this arrangement it is therefore easy, starting from a common boot,to make various versions intended to be adapted to suit various shapesof binding. This design proves particularly advantageous as regards thevarious types of groove and rib that there are on the underside of thesoles of cross-country ski boots.

The arrangements in accordance with the invention may also proveadvantageous when producing boots intended for snowboarding, where therecess is then at the instep and the extensions of the embedded piecepoint downwards, the pin being along the longitudinal plane of the boot.

These arrangements may also advantageously apply when producing bootsintended for ice- or roller-skating, where the sole has arrangementsliable to allow the blade or roller support plate to be secured by meansof the metal pin and the extensions of the embedded piece.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The way in which the invention can be produced, and the advantages thatstem therefrom, will emerge clearly from the description of theembodiment which follows, supported by the appended figures.

FIG. 1 is an outline perspective view of a stirrup piece in accordancewith the invention, showed viewed from above in FIG. 2 and viewed fromthe side in FIG. 3.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are front views of the front recess in the sole, showingthe pin when it is dismantled from, and respectively mounted in, thestirrup piece.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal section through the sole equipped with thedevice in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 7 is a view of the same sole, from below.

FIG. 8 is an outline perspective view of an alternative form of thepiece embedded in the front of the sole.

FIG. 9 is an exploded outline perspective view of one embodiment of theinvention, with removable wearing pieces.

FIG. 10 is an outline perspective view of the underside of a sole whichhas a wide groove capable of accommodating the profiled strips shown inFIGS. 11 and 12.

FIGS. 13 and 14 are cross sections showing the integration of the stripsof FIGS. 11 and 12 into the sole.

FIGS. 15 and 16 are outline perspective views illustrating twoalternative forms of the attachment of the pin to the moulded piece.

FIG. 17 is an outline perspective view of the sole of a snowboardingboot in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 18 is a detail view of an embedded piece in accordance with theinvention, in the case of a snowboarding boot.

FIG. 19 is a side view of an in-line roller skate in accordance with theinvention.

In the remainder of the description, it will be assumed that the bootsdescribed are lying flat, which means that the underside of the sole ishorizontal.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As already stated, the invention relates to boots for gliding sports,especially cross-country skiing.

As is known, a cross-country ski boot is composed mainly of an upper andof a sole (1) in which the arrangements inherent to the invention aremore particularly located.

As is known, cross-country ski boots have a recess (2) in the front partof the sole, around the mid plane and which has an opening towards thefront and towards the underside of the sole. The lateral walls (3, 4) ofthis recess (2) consist of two more or less vertical portions formingthe bearing surfaces for a transverse pin (5).

The novel feature of the invention lies in the way in which the pin isattached to the sole (1).

In contrast to all existing boots, the boot in accordance with theinvention has a pin which is secured to the sole after the sole has beenmoulded. For this, in its front part, the sole has an embedded piece (6)which constitutes the anchoring points for the pin (5). In theembodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6, the embedded piece (6) is in theform of a U-shaped stirrup piece. The base (7) of this stirrup piece (6)constitutes a transverse bar which is embedded within the sole, at thefirst toe phalanx. The length of this bar (7) slightly exceeds the widthof the recess (2). The legs (8, 9) of the stirrup piece (6) pointforwards, and are directed slightly downwards to prevent the leg (7) ofthe stirrup piece (6) from passing through the central groove in thesole. The ends (11, 12) of the legs (8, 9) are intended to accommodatethe transverse pin (5). For this, these ends have holes (13, 14) piercedtransversely and opposite one another.

In the alternative form illustrated in FIG. 4, the end of the pin has atapped hole (16) into which the threaded shank (19) of the bolt (18) isscrewed.

Of course, it would not be departing from the scope of the invention ifany method that allowed effective attachment were used to attach the pin(5), i.e. for example, a tapping in one of the holes (13, 14) into whichthe threaded end of the pin (5) could be screwed.

In the alternative form illustrated in FIG. 15, the pin (60) consists ofa hollow body (61) inside which two coaxial pegs (62, 63) can slide. Areturn member (not depicted) of the coil spring type keeps these pegs(62, 63) in the deployed position, and opposes their retraction into thebody (61). The pin (60) is fitted between the extensions (22, 23) of theembedded piece (20) by pushing the pegs (62, 63) into the body (61)stressing the return member (not depicted). Then, once this pin (60) isprecisely positioned between the holes (13, 14) in the piece (20), thepegs (62, 63) are released and become housed in the holes (13, 14).

In another embodiment illustrated in FIG. 16, the pin (5) is secured tohollow tubes (65, 66) so that it forms a stirrup piece (64). Thisstirrup piece (64) can be pushed onto the extensions (11, 12) of theembedded metal piece. This stirrup piece (64) is secured by means ofpins (67) inserted into the holes (68 and 69) in the tube (66) and inthe extension (12) of the piece embedded within the sole, respectively.

To optimize the anchorage of this stirrup piece, the legs (8, 9) have adiscontinuity which means that their ends (11, 12) are offset slightlydownwards so that the bar (7) is embedded as deeply as possible withinthe sole, to avoid it from passing through the central rib.

Furthermore, these ends (11, 12) are not as thick as the central bar (7)because they are machined to have flat surfaces, particularly to allowthem to be positioned in the mould.

During the moulding of the sole (1), the stirrup piece (6) is positionedin such a way that the bearing surfaces (3, 4) are moulded around theends (11, 12) of the stirrup piece. It is held within the sole duringmoulding by any means known in the field of moulding, such as centringstakes for example. After moulding, all that is required is for thewalls (3, 4) to be pierced at the holes (13, 14) in order to obtain thepassage for the pin (5). The stirrup piece could also be moulded byfitting the said holes (13, 14) with removable pieces to avoidsubsequent piercing.

In an alternative form, the opposing internal faces of the legs (11, 12)may be tangential to the mould insert which then acts as a centringdevice.

As can be seen, the sole of a boot in accordance with the invention canbe distinguished fundamentally from all existing boots by the fact thatthe sole is moulded without any metal pieces forming a bridge, whichmakes this moulding operation far easier by dispensing with undercuts.

In an embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the embedded piece (20) comes frombending a metal sheet into three portions (21, 22, 23). The centralportion (21) is intended to be embedded in the material of the front ofthe sole. It has holes (25) allowing the plastic to spread out duringmoulding. The large area of a portion (21) of this kind allows effectiveanchorage. This portion (21) has bent lateral extensions (22) and (23),the front ends (26) and (27) of which are offset slightly downwards andhave holes (13) and (14) for attaching the pin (5).

As can be seen in FIG. 9, the portions (30, 31) of the walls (3, 4) areadvantageously mounted extractably on the ends (11, 12) of the stirruppiece (6). This region of the boot is the part where the most wear takesplace because it is at the lower front edge of the sole. It thereforerubs directly on the binding and forms one of the regions which is mostexposed when walking. These extractable portions (30, 31) havelongitudinal drillings (33, 34) allowing them to be pushed onto the ends(11, 12) of the stirrup piece (6). These portions (30, 31) also have atransverse drilling (32) allowing the passage of the pin (5) which willcatch on the ends (11, 12) of the stirrup piece and thus attach thewearing pieces (30, 31).

Of course it would not be departing from the scope of the invention ifthese wearing pieces were given any advantageous shape that could besecured to the visible portions of the stirrup piece (6). In particular,these wearing pieces could form one single portion.

Of course, the anchoring points mentioned hereinabove can also be usedfor attaching some other piece to the sole (1).

As is known, in the field of cross-country skiing, there are two majorstandards that define the structure and design of the underside of thesole. In a first standard, generally denoted "NNN", the sole (1) has twolongitudinal parallel grooves placed symmetrically about the mid-planeof the boot. In another standard, denoted "SNS", the sole has a single,wider, groove arranged along the longitudinal axis. This or thesegroove(s) are intended to interact with corresponding rails situated onthe ski or on the bindings.

By adding a small-sized piece, a common boot can be adapted to suit oneof these two standards.

As shown in FIGS. 10, 11, 12, this common boot has a wide groove (40)situated along the longitudinal axis of the sole (1). The dimensions ofthis wide groove (40) are sufficient to accommodate a strip (41) whichhas two thinner parts (43) and a central rib (42). When this strip (41)is inserted inside the wide groove (40), the lateral slopes of thisgroove define, with the flat portions (43) and the rib (42), two grooves(47) which are placed symmetrically with respect to the longitudinalaxis of the boot.

Thanks to wings (48) with holes (49) in, this strip (41) can be slippedat the front into the ends (11, 12) of the stirrup piece (6) forattaching the pin (5). The strip has means (not depicted) allowing it tobe attached to the rear end of the sole. The profile thus obtainedcorresponds to the one described earlier for the "NNN" standard (seeFIG. 13).

The profile depicted in FIG. 12 has a strip (50) which along itslongitudinal axis has a central groove (52) to the dimensions laid downin the "SNS" standard. As before, inserting this strip makes it possibleto form on the underside of the sole a groove which has the dimensionslaid down in said standard (see FIG. 14).

The operation of mounting an additional rib as described hereinabove caneasily be substituted, in a way which is obvious to a person skilled inthe art, by the attachment on the underside of the sole of a platewhich, on its underside, has an ice-skating blade or a line of rollers.

As already stated, the arrangements in accordance with the invention mayprove advantageous when producing soles for snowboarding shoes in which,as illustrated in FIG. 17, there is a recess (70) at the instep betweenthe heel region (71) and the front part (72) of the sole. Thus, in thishousing (70) more or less at the middle, there are two bearing surfaces(73, 74) between which the pin (75) for interacting with the binding(not depicted) is located.

In accordance with the invention, the sole accommodates an embeddedpiece (76) drawn in dotted line. This piece (76), illustrated in FIG.18, consists of a bent plate, of which the central part (79), which isadvantageously perforated, is parallel to the horizontal plane of thesole and of which the end parts (77, 78) form the extensions extendinginto the bearing surfaces (73, 74). These extensions (77, 78) havepierced holes (80, 81) intended to accommodate, removably, and accordingto the various alternative attachment forms described hereinabove, thepin (75) that interacts with the binding. In this instance, for fittingthe pin in the recess, it may prove advantageous to use a pin withretractable ends, like the one illustrated in FIG. 15.

As already stated, the invention can also be used for manufacturingboots intended for skating. Thus, as illustrated in FIG. 19; the boot(90) at the front has an embedded piece (not depicted) intended toaccommodate the transverse pin (95). This pin (95) allows the plate (92)supporting the rollers to be attached temporarily.

It emerges from the foregoing that cross-country ski boots, skatingboots or snowboarding boots in accordance with the invention have a mainadvantage which lies in the fact that the boot can be moulded without avisible pin, and this considerably simplifies the moulding equipment,avoiding devices with slides, and that advantageously allows the sole tobe produced directly on the upper.

The characteristic use of this embedded piece creates robust anchoringpoints, and this allows special adaptor pieces or wearing pieces to bepushed on.

What is claimed is:
 1. A sport boot for interacting with a glidingmember, said sport boot having an upper portion and a sole, wherein thesole is molded to the upper portion such that said boot includesa recessthat passes inwardly through the front of said sole, said recess havingtwo parallel vertical side walls; a stirrup means embedded in said sole,said stirrup having a pair of extensions that extend into the parallelvertical side walls of said recess; said extensions having receivingmeans for receiving a removable pin which is capable of being securelyfitted into said extensions and securing means for retaining the pin insaid extensions.
 2. The boot of claim 1 wherein said stirrup is aU-shaped member having a base from which a pair of legs extend outwardlyfor receiving said pin therein.
 3. The boot of claim 2 wherein said baseis molded in the sole and aligned in parallel with the bottom of thesole means and said legs are canted downwardly from said base.
 4. Theboot of claim 3 wherein said legs each have a front piece that is offsetdownwardly with respect to the plane of said base.
 5. The boot accordingto claim 1 wherein said stirrup means includes a plate that is bent intothree sections, a first central section that is parallel to the sole ofthe boot and two lateral side sections that extend into the side wallsof the recess, said side sections having receiving means therein forremovably receiving said pin.
 6. The boot of claim 1 wherein said pin isslidably received in holes formed in said extensions, said pin having anexpanded head at one end and an expanded headed screw threaded into theother end thereof to prevent the pin from passing out of said holes. 7.The boot according to claim 1 wherein the pin has at least one end piecethat is slidably received in the body of the pin for axial movementwhereby the pin is retractable into the body to facilitate mounting ofthe pin in the extensions.
 8. The boot of claim 1 wherein said pin ismounted in two parallely aligned hollow sleeves that are perpendicularlydisposed with respect to the pin, said sleeves being arranged to beslidably received over members contained in the extension of thestirrup.
 9. The boot of claim 1 wherein said recess is located forwardof the metatarsophalangeal joint region and the extensions of thestirrup are forwardly disposed.
 10. The boot of claim 9 wherein thefront end of the sole contains removable opposed wear housings thatcomplement the contour of the extensions of the embedded stirrup wherebysaid wear housings can be slidably received on said extensions, saidwear housings further including means for receiving said pin therein.11. The boot of claim 9 that further includes a wide longitudinallydisposed groove on the underside of the sole;a strip mounted inside saidgroove having a contoured outer face that complements a region on a ski,anchoring means for anchoring the rear of said strip to the sole, andthe front of said strip being anchored by the extensions of said stirrupand said pin.
 12. The boot of claim 1 wherein said pin is arranged toengage a plate of a skate to attach the skate to the boot.
 13. A sportboot for interacting with a gliding member that includes:sole means onthe bottom of the boot having a recess that passes inwardly through thefront of the sole, said recess containing two spaced apart vertical sidewalls; a stirrup means mounted in said recess that is embedded in saidsole, said stirrup having a pair of spaced apart extensions that extendinto the side walls of said recess; said extensions having receivingmeans for removably receiving therein a pin; securing means forremovably retaining the pin in said extensions, wherein said stirrup isa U-shaped member having a base from which a pair of legs extendoutwardly for receiving said pin therein; and wherein said base isembedded in the sole and parallely aligned with the bottom of the solemeans and said legs are canted downwardly from said base.